In a statement unanimously adopted by its members, the Karabakh parliament linked the bloodshed to a new round of U.S.-mediated negotiations which the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers began outside Washington on Tuesday.
It said that Yerevan must refuse to negotiate until Baku ends truce violations along the Karabakh “line of contact” and the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and provides “documentary guarantees” of its commitment to the ceasefire regime.
“Otherwise, the continuation of the negotiations would mean the encouragement of the Azerbaijani side’s aggressive behavior and a privilege [granted] at the international level,” it warned.
The statement also called for international sanctions against Baku and said Russian peacekeepers stationed in Karabakh should take “tougher measures to counter Azerbaijan’s inhuman, genocidal actions.”
The Armenian government did not immediately respond to the appeal. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian tweeted instead that the international community should take “practical steps to ensure rights and security of the Nagorno-Karabakh people.”
Pashinian pointed to the deaths of the four Karabakh soldiers and the continuing Azerbaijani blockade of the Lachin corridor. “High risk of destabilization in the South Caucasus,” he added.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry responded by accusing Pashinian of misleading the international community. The ministry spokesman, Aykhan Hajizada, claimed that the Azerbaijani army took “retaliatory measures” after one of its soldiers was wounded by “illegal” Armenian forces.
“Armenia, instead of interfering in Azerbaijan’s internal affairs, must … respect Azerbaijan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in both words and deeds,” he wrote.
Meanwhile, Russia expressed serious concern at the overnight incident but stopped short of publicly blaming the Azerbaijani side for it. The Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, also renewed Moscow’s calls for Baku to fully unblock traffic through the only road connecting Karabakh to Armenia.
“We believe that taking quick measures to fully unblock the Lachin corridor and creating conditions for the normal life of the civilian population would contribute to a de-escalation of the situation,” Zakharova told reporters.
Pashinian drew strong condemnation from the Karabakh leaders and the Armenian opposition after he pledged in May to recognize Azerbaijani sovereignty over Karabakh through an Armenian-Azerbaijani peace treaty. His critics say the far-reaching move only emboldened Baku to step up the pressure on the Karabakh Armenians.
The peace treaty is the main focus of the ongoing meeting of the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers which began in the presence of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The latter also held separate talks with the two ministers.
“We support Armenia and Azerbaijan working together toward a durable and dignified agreement,” Blinken tweeted late on Tuesday.